Fuse-igniting device.



A. J. STRANE.

FUSE IGNITING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. n. 191s.

, 1,267,474. Y Patented May 28,1918.

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UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEEicE.

ARCHIBALD J'. STBANE, 0F TAMAQUA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIG'NOR TO ATLAS POWDER COMPANY, OF WILMINGTON, DELAWARE, A CORPORATION 0F DELAWARE.

EUSE-IGNITING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 28, 1918.

To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, ARGHTBALD J. STRANE, a citizen of the United States, residing at VvTamaqua, in the county of Schuylkill Yand State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Fuse-Igniting Devices, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to igniting devices for fuses of the type used in mining and other commercial pursuits and also. in certain military operations,l the object of the invention being to Yprovide a device of this character adapted to be easily and quickly placed in 'position with reference to ordinary commercial fuse and which will serve to ignite said fuse with certainty under all conditions.

The lighting of the commonly' termed safety fuse or black powder fuse or fuse of similar type, is notoriously diiicult-an amateur requirin as many as ten to twenty matches to one use while any one, but a specially skilled worker will not be able to make better than one lighting with two matches. Special schemes are known and used by some to give more favorable results as far as the actual igniting of the fuse is concerned but in many cases this has been done at the expense of greatly increased risk to life or of having the device fail to per-K form its function with the result that the shot is missed. Other known devices have given some measure of satisfaction but at such a greatly increased cost as to prevent their use from becoming general.

When candles are used for the purpose of lighting fuse of this nature the spit of one of the first fuses in a series to be ignited often blows the candle out and leaves the,

worker in a very dangerous situation-without light and in the presence of explosive charges the fuses of some of which have already been ignited. Ordinarily the worker takes time to relight the candle and even continues the igniting of the reinainin fuses althoughrthe time, under such con tions, passes inuch 'more rapidly than the busy worker realizes, and often the first shot of the series explodes before the worker has reacheda place of safety, with the result thathe loses hislife oris seriously injured. The same serious condition results when the lighting ofthe fuses is accomplished by means of a separate llame and the Work Iis delayed abnormally, either because of the powder having fallen out of the ends of the fuses or having become damp from exposure to moist atmosphere. In these cases the obstinate fuses are re-cut and tried again and, even if no greater damage is done, the order of the firing of the shots will be different than that planned by the 'respective lengths of fuse and desired order of igniting so that at best an ineiiicient round will result.

As this description proceeds it will be seen that the invention comprises a metal pin adapted to be inserted in the black powder core of a piece of commercial fuse said pin carrying a head of inflammable material adapted to be readily ignited by friction, said head being of novel formation to adapt it to coact with1 the adjacent parts of the fuse in a novel and ecient manner.

In the accompanying drawing in which ylike numerals designate corresponding parts, Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional view upon a magnified scale, of a piece of fuse having the invention applied thereto and Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical section upon line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

In the drawing 5 designates the outer coat or cover yof the fuse, 6 the inner coat or lining of the fuse and 7 the black powder core. The improved igniting device constituting the subject of the present invention comprises a pin 8 having a pointed end 9 and a head 10. The head 10 is embedded in a pear shaped head 11 of ordinary match composition. The pin 8 is of such diameter and length that it may be readily inserted, full length, into the powder core 7 and when so inserted will be held firmlyv in place. The coatings 5 and 6 of the fuse (which are usually water-proofed) form a bottle, as it were, for the core 7, fThe head 10 of the pin and the pear shaped head 11 of match composition have a corking effect on the black powder core7 to prevent its losing out and to prevent moisture from getting in.

The pear shape of the. head 11 permits of said head being snugly embedded in the core 7 at the inner side of head 11 while the outer side thereof is just suilciently exposed as to permit of ready ignition by friction but not so exposed as to be accidentally dislodged. The composition of head 11- being homogeneous and of a readily propagating nature causes' the ame from the outer portion to be instantly transmitted around the tion of the black powder core which thus 'cannot escape ignition.

The composition 11 may or may not be dipped in a water roofing solution such as melted paran. his composition may be of the strike anywhere type or of the safety type as desired-in the latter case a prepared scratcher is provided.

The rovision of the head causes the composition 11 not to rely alone on adhesion but provides a positive mechanical grip between the composition 11 and the head 10 thus guarding against any possible dismembering'of the device.

Itis to be noted that when the igniting device is placed in position the taper of the innerA portion of the head 11 acts after the manner of a wedge to expand the black lpowder core and adjacent parts of the fuse,

thus completely surrounding said part of the head 11 with an annular bodyof black powder lying in close contact with the head 11, entirely about the circumference of the latter.

lIn the use of this igniting device the operator 'will not be called upon to handle anything more complex or dangerous than a parlor match, nor more delicate than a slightly revised house pin. It provides means whereby a single fuse or a plurality of fuses may be quickly, easily, economically and positively ignited by the most ordinary layman 1n any branch of work. It renders available a device so simple that any person will be able to use it, so cheap that all can aii'ord to use it, and so safe and eiiicient that all will desire to use it with the advantageous result that the many dangerous practices now existant in the handling of explosive charges, will be eliminated.

1t is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the use of this igniting device for the particular purpose set forth but that it may be used in any relation for which its design and capabilities render it adaptable. Itis alsoto be understood that the invention is not limited to the precise design 'herein shown but that it includes within Jits purview whatever changes fairly come within the spirit of the appended claims.

Having `described my invention what I claim is: A 1. A device of the character described comprising a pin having a point at one end, a head at the other end, and a mass vof match composition adapted to be ignited by friction and of substantially pear shape with its small end disposed inwardly to constitute a spreader for the powder in the core of a fuse, said pin projecting a considerable distance beyond said mass to adapt it to project to such an extent into theI core of the fuse as to hold the mass of match composition firmly against dislodgment during the -scraping movement 'necessary to ignite the mass of match composition by friction.

2. A device of the character described comprising a pin having a point at one end, a head at the other end and a mass of match composition ladapted to be ignited by friction, in which saidhead is embedded, said mass being of pear shape with its'smaller portion disposed inwardly to thereby constitute a s readerportion for the powder core-of a use, the proportions of the parts being such that when the igniting'device is in position in a fuse the head of the pin lies substantially in the transverse plane of the end of the fuse, said head acting-as a deector to direct the flame of the match composition inwardly toward the powder ot' the core of the fuse. i

' 3. A device of the character described comprising a pin having a point at one end and a head at the other end and a mass of match composition in which said head-is embedded, said massbeing adapted to be ignited by friction, the 'mass being substantially of pear shape with i'tssmaller` portion disposed inwardly, the body of the pin projecting a; substantial distance beyond the mass of the match composition. i

4. A device of the character described comprising a pin having a point at V'one end and a head at the other, a pear shaped mass of match composition in which said head is embedded, the smaller portion of said mass being disposed inwardlyv and the yproportion of the parts being such that when the device is in use the head of the pin lies substantially in the transverse plane of the end ofthe fuse in which the device is inserted, said pin having .a Haring part upon the `under side of its head which acts as a deiector to direct the flame from the mass of .match composition toward the powder constituting the core ofthe fuse in which the device is inserted...

In testimonywhereof vI aiixmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

ARCHIBALD J. sTRANE.

Witnesses E. RAE STRANE, y J. HOWARD WILLIAMS.

Vso 

